Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Kerry's Ethiopia Opportunity

The U.S. secretary of state's visit to Addis Ababa
is a chance to pressure the government on its dreadful record on human
rights.

This month, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will
travel to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to attend the 21st African Union (AU)
summit. The message he brings will speak volumes about the future of
American engagement on the continent.
In announcing the visit during a U.S. Senate hearing last month, Mr.
Kerry expressed concern about the potentially negative impact of China's
and Iran's increased presence in Africa. He noted that graft and poor
development choices could undermine the stability of some African
governments, and he acknowledged the need for more U.S. engagement.
Further American cooperation on development and security would be
good news for Africa. But the U.S. must continue to focus on another
potentially destabilizing factor in the continent: ongoing violations of
basic human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Since their inception, the AU and its precursor, the Organization of
African Unity, have embraced the principles of the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights. The African Charter on Human and People's Rights
expressly protects a raft of basic human rights, including freedom of
association, free expression and political participation. But despite
these affirmations, the protection of such rights remains inconsistent
across AU nations. Some governments continue to ignore certain
provisions entirely.
If he needs an example, Mr. Kerry need only look out his window in
Addis Ababa. This month the Ethiopian Supreme Court upheld an 18-year
prison sentence against independent journalist Eskinder Nega.
Though the Ethiopian government is often touted as a close U.S.
partner on security and poverty-reduction efforts, it has a dreadful
record on rights. After parliamentary elections in 2005, the government
jailed opposition leaders such as former judge Birtukan Mideksa and
independent journalists who reported on the post-election unrest.
Mr. Nega and his wife Serkalem Fasil, herself a prominent publisher,
were among those arrested. They spent 17 months in a detention center on
trumped-up charges of treason and genocide before they were finally
released. Pregnant at the time of her arrest, Ms. Fasil was denied
prenatal care for seven months and gave birth to their son Nafkot while
in custody.
In the spring of 2011, as popular uprisings gathered momentum across
North Africa and the Middle East, Mr. Nega wrote extensively about their
possible impact on Ethiopia. Despite warnings that he was going too
far, Mr. Nega continued to write and speak publicly, often criticizing
the government and calling for democratic reforms, while emphasizing the
importance of nonviolence. But like fellow journalists Reeyot Alemu and
Woubshet Taye, and opposition activists such as Andualem Aragie, Mr.
Nega was charged in September 2011 under Ethiopia's widely criticized
2009 Antiterrorism Proclamation. He now faces 18 years in prison.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights has expressed
grave alarm at Ethiopia's persecution of journalists and peaceful
activists. In April the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention also
weighed in, declaring Mr. Nega's detention illegal under international
law and calling for his immediate release. But these admonitions have so
far not convinced Ethiopian authorities to change course.
When U.S. President Barack Obama
laid out his administration's agenda for sub-Saharan Africa last
summer, he emphasized strong democratic institutions and respect for the
rule of law, noting that these promote both prosperity and stability.
But as long as journalists and political activists are imprisoned for
speaking their truth to power, such principles will remain illusory.
Mr. Kerry has an important opportunity this month to convey that very
message to his counterparts in Addis Ababa. Mr. Nega and his colleagues
deserve nothing less. Mr. Schibbye is a Swedish journalist who was
detained in Ethiopia for 14 months under the country's antiterror laws
and held at Kaliti Prison with Eskinder Nega. Mr. Griffith is an
attorney with Freedom Now, a legal advocacy organization that works to
free prisoners of conscience, including Mr. Nega. http://online.wsj.com/